Wheeled snow shovel



June 3, 1952 J. W. WEINGART WHEELED SNOW SHOVEL Filed April 21, 1949 INVENTOR.

1/0///V W. WE/NGA/?T ATTORNEY Patented June 3, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WHEELED SNOW SHOVEL v John W. Weingart, Waterbury, Conn.

Application April 21, 1949, Serial No. 88,715

1 Claim.

This invention relates to snow shovels, and more particularly to a shovel having small wheels or rollers for supporting the forward end of the shovel upon the surface which is to be cleared of snow.

One object of this invention is to provide a snow shovel of the above nature which will greatly reduce the expenditure of energy which is normally required in a snow-shovelling operation.

Another object is to provide a shovel of the above nature in which the wheels are so disposed laterally of the scoop as to substantially avoid interference with the normal use of the shovel.

Another object is to provide a shovel of the above nature in which the wheels are so located as to permit the user to easily control the height of the forward edge of the scoop, whereby the scoop may be selectively engaged with the surface being cleared, or supported by means of the wheels so as to facilitate forward thrusting movement of the shovel.

A further object is to provide a shovel of the above nature which will be simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, easy to manipulate, compact, ornamental in appearance, and very efiicient and durable in use.

With these and other objects in view, there has been illustrated on the accompanying drawing one form in which the invention may conveniently be embodied in practice.

In the drawing:

Fig. I is a perspective view of the improved snow shovel.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same, a portion of the handle being broken away.

Fig. 3 is a side view, showing the shovel as it would appear in relation to a pavement or other surface being cleared of snow.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on a larger scale, taken on the line 44 of Fig. 2, showing one of the wheels, and how it is mounted.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing the other wheel, taken on the line 55 of Fig. 2.

Referring now to the drawing in which like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the improved snow shovel comprises an upwardly concave scoop l0, which is preferably made of sheet metal, and which has an elongated rearwardly-extending handle I centrally secured to the lower surface thereof by means of a sheet metal socket member 2 and rivets |3. The scoop l0 preferably has a plurality of stiffening corrugation l4.

In order to reinforce the scoop l0 and also to assist in retaining snow thereon, provision is made of an upwardly-inclined rear edge portion I5, and upwardly inclined side edge portions I6, H. The rear edge portion |5 preferably has a forwardly concave upward extension |5a secured thereto by means of rivets |5b,- so that the snow will be prevented from sliding over the rear edge portion I5 during forward thrusting movement of the shovel.

The front edge of the scoop I0 is strengthened by means of an elongated fiat steel blade |8 which is secured against the lower surface of the scoop by means of rivets l9, and which has a straight front edge 20 disposed forwardly of the edge of said scoop Ill.

The opposite ends of the blade I8 are provided with integral rearwardly-extending arms 2|, 22 which underlie opposite side edges of the scoop I0 and serve as bases for the securement of a pair of angular wheel brackets 23,24.

The wheel brackets 23, 24 are identical in construction, and each comprises a flat base portion 25 having a row of four equidistantly spaced apertures 26, 21, 28, 29 (Fig. 5). The base portion 25 of each bracket 23, 24 is secured against the lowersurface of the arm 2| (or 22, as the-case may be) by means of a pair of screws 30, 3|, and nuts 32, 33 thereon. The screws 30, 3| are adapted to be engaged selectively either in the apertures 26, 28 or in the apertures 21,29, respectively, said screws being also engaged in a single pair of apertures 32a and 33a in the scoop I0. Thus, the'brackets 23 and 24 are permitted to have a forward adjustment which will be further described hereinafter.

Each of the wheel brackets 23, 24 also comprises an apertured triangular vertical ear 34 which carries a horizontal outwardly-extending headed trunnion 35 having a reduced portion 36 disposed in said arm 34 and secured by an inner swaged portion 31.

The respective trunnions 35, 35 carry a pair of small vertical wheels in the form of steel disks 38, 39 which are adapted to roll upon the pavement or other surface being cleared of snow, and thus support the forward end of the scoop ID with the minimum of friction. The wheels 38, 39 are of a diameter which is suflicient to enable them to readily roll over small obstructions, and small enough to avoid any material interference with the normal use of the snow shovel. In practice, it has been found that wheels having a diameter of from two to three inches will operate very efficiently. Further, the wheels 38, 39 are relatively thin so that they may be pushed this distance preferably being approximately A,.

Thus, while the wheel 38 may act as a fulcrum to support the blade [3 out of contact with the pavement, the operator may, if he desires, in-' cline the shovel more steeply so as to engage the front edge 20 with the pavement, and thus permit all traces of snow to be removed therefrom.

The operator may prefer to maintain the blade 18 at a higher elevation, as for example when the shovel is to be used for clearing frozen-ground, rough driveways, or other irregular surfaces, in which case he may remove the screws 30-, 3f", shift the bracket 23 forwardly, and then reinsert saidscrewsthrough the apertures 21, 29 so that the wheel 38 will occupy the position shown at 33' in Fig. 5. Inthis position the edge 2|]- of the blade I 8-willbe disposed inwardly of the-periphery of the wheel- 38, and thus will have additional clearance for passing. over obstructions so as not to interfere with operation of the shovel.

It'will. be understood that the wheel bracket 24 and the wheel 39 thereon, will be adjusted in the same manner as described in connection with the bracket 23 and the wheel 38.

The wheel brackets23, 24, and the wheels33, 39- may be packaged in pairs by the manufacturer for sale tothe user, in which case the user may apply the brackets and wheels to any suitable snow shovel. The plurality of aperture 26, 21, 2'8, 2% will then be found' useful to permit the holding. screws 31),v 3! r to be entered selectively through any of saidv apertures so as to register with the apertures which are provided in some snow shovels.

Operation In operation, the operator will merely grasp the handle H and thrust the scoop I'll forwardly under a mass. of snow, whereupon he may lift the shovel and throw the snow to one side" in the customary manner? During the forward thrustl ng: movement, the wheels 38', 39 will; of'course; roll upon the ground or pavement so as to substantially eliminate any friction against said pavement. and. greatly facilitate the thrusting movement. I

Further;- the: wheels .38, 39 will offer little re-' sistance to forward" movement through thesnow, and are light in weight because of their narrow construction.

Inthis manner; substantially all of the snow may be removed fronrthe pavement. If, the operator should wish to'- scrape the pavement he may do so merely' by inclining the shovel more steeply, so as to swing the edge 20 downwardly into engagement with the pavement. When-1 the wheels 38, 39 are in their rearwardly adjusted positions, the operator may strike the forward edge 20 of the snow shovel against the pavement so as to shake ofi snow adhering thereto, without danger of damaging the wheels 38, 39.

If the operator should intend to use the shovel on irregular surfaces, he may, of course, adjust the wheels 33, 39 forwardly, as described above, so that the blade l8 may be maintained at a higher elevation, and thus will offer added clearance over projections and irregularities in the pavement or other surface being cleared.

One advantage of the snow shovel herein disclosed is that it will facilitate the cleaning of irregular or rough surfaces, inasmuch as the wheels may be'adjusted so that the forward edge of the shovel will clear irregularities and small obstructions.

While there has been disclosed in this specification one form in which the invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that this form is shown for the purpose of illustration only, and that the invention is not to be limited tothe specific disclosure, but may be modified and em bodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit. In short, the invention includes all the modifications and embodiments coming within the scope of the following claim.

Having. thus-fully described: the invention, what is claimed as new and for which it is desired to secure Letters Patent, is:

Ina snow shovel, a rectangular scoop having a rearwardly-extending handle connected thereto, a pair of angular brackets connected to the base portion of said scoopimmediately behind the front edge thereof, said brackets having upwardly-extending apertured ears located: laterally outside of saidscoop; apair of horizontal trunnions rigidly mountedin apertures of said cars,- a pair of forwardly-extending thin wheels of relatively small diameter rotatably mounted on said trunnions, the forward peripheries of said wheels lying closely adjacent the front edge of said scoop; whereby the operator may readily swing; said scoop about said wheels-as a fulcrum to precisely control the height-ofsaid front edge above the ground being cleared of snow.

JGH-N W. WEINGAR'I.

REFERENCES CITED Y The following references are" of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES" PATENTS 

